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Question for anyone that follows Karen Hurd’s work
I’ve found there are a fair few people here that know of karen hurd and her work. It just so happens there is a bit of crossover in grant’s experience and the bean protocol.
One thing I can’t wrap my head around though is Karen’s reasoning as to why sugar is bad.
Fruits are banned in the protocol, but as we know, certain carbs like white rice spike insulin far more than fruits like oranges.
Does anyone understand where Karen is coming from?
She explains a lot in her podcasts on her webpage. Each of them provides a bit of new information. Sugar and caffeine raises adrenalin and that is why they are both not recommended, even natural sources, while healing. They both gives us energy we do not have, pushing us over the edge in the end. Healing means resting, thus stimulants must go.
There are a few episodes where she specifically talks about sugar, this is one of them: https://www.tiffaneeandco.com.au/podcast/episode/19d92468/harness-your-adhd-genius-with-food-or-karen-hurd-470
Other podcasts are found here: https://www.karenhurd.com/podcasts.html
Yes but the mechanism that sugar raises adrenaline is through the spike in blood glucose. As you know, starches like white rice and potatoes cause a much higher spike in blood glucose than fruits like apples, so it really doesn’t make sense to me.
All of her other work seems to make sense thus far other than this idea.
Thanks for sharing the podcast.
Quote from Liz on April 27, 2023, 10:02 pmShe explains a lot in her podcasts on her webpage. Each of them provides a bit of new information. Sugar and caffeine raises adrenalin and that is why they are both not recommended, even natural sources, while healing. They both gives us energy we do not have, pushing us over the edge in the end. Healing means resting, thus stimulants must go.
There are a few episodes where she specifically talks about sugar, this is one of them: https://www.tiffaneeandco.com.au/podcast/episode/19d92468/harness-your-adhd-genius-with-food-or-karen-hurd-470
Other podcasts are found here: https://www.karenhurd.com/podcasts.html
Sugar lowers adrenaline. That is not to say that sugar can't cause other issues. But it is one of the most powerful anti-adrenaline things you can consume. If you have insulin resistance consuming sugar can lead to blood sugar staying too high for too long, loads of insulin being released to (over)compensate for this, and then insulin pushing all the sugar into cells to the point where blood sugar falls too low, this will trigger adrenaline release. It's when blood sugar falls to low that adrenaline gets released. But the same thing should happen even worse with starchy foods since they have higher glycemic indexes than sugary foods.
My own feeling, and I know this isn't crowd-approved, is that starches and sugars are NOT the same, and that starches are more like food and sugars are more like a flavoring.
I think it helps if meals are square with fat, protein, carb.
Quote from salt on April 28, 2023, 2:45 amQuote from Liz on April 27, 2023, 10:02 pmShe explains a lot in her podcasts on her webpage. Each of them provides a bit of new information. Sugar and caffeine raises adrenalin and that is why they are both not recommended, even natural sources, while healing. They both gives us energy we do not have, pushing us over the edge in the end. Healing means resting, thus stimulants must go.
There are a few episodes where she specifically talks about sugar, this is one of them: https://www.tiffaneeandco.com.au/podcast/episode/19d92468/harness-your-adhd-genius-with-food-or-karen-hurd-470
Other podcasts are found here: https://www.karenhurd.com/podcasts.html
Sugar lowers adrenaline. That is not to say that sugar can't cause other issues. But it is one of the most powerful anti-adrenaline things you can consume. If you have insulin resistance consuming sugar can lead to blood sugar staying too high for too long, loads of insulin being released to (over)compensate for this, and then insulin pushing all the sugar into cells to the point where blood sugar falls too low, this will trigger adrenaline release. It's when blood sugar falls to low that adrenaline gets released. But the same thing should happen even worse with starchy foods since they have higher glycemic indexes than sugary foods.
Maybe most people today (at least those with health issues) have insulin resistance - and thats why the rule that sugar releases adrenaline will apply to most people. At least the ones that are looking to improve their ill health. And those are the ones coming to Karen or any other healer for that sake.
She is not against a piece of fruit when you are healed though. Protocols are different for sick or healthy people..... thats not to forget.
But the point is that as far as we know there is no difference between sugar and starch in regards to insulin, so it doesn’t make sense to ban fruits in the healing protocols if refined starches are allowed.
You could be right but I wish there was a known scientific difference.
I'm of the opinion that Ray Peat is right to some degree about sugar, that it has anti-stress properties in the body. I've tried to do low-sugar low-carb and I feel awful on it. Having some sugar from fruit balanced with a lot of meat works best for me. I also did horribly on the bean diet, it was awful. I became fatigued, weak muscles, my digestive tract was a mess, breathing problems, ack. No thanks to lots of beans for me.
She also believes saturated fats are bad and polyunsaturated are good. Sorry, that just is plain wrong.
@tommy you are right. It is about how fast the sugar is digested, how much you eat at once and how much insulin will be pumped.. You are also right that refined starches the extrem example is for example cream of rice is digested very fast. Especially if you eat it with another sugar sources like some dried fruits etc.. I get hypoglycemia basically every time like 60 minutes after I eat meal like this. The key point here is to eat balanced meals so starch, protein, fat, fiber. So if I eat that white rice with meat, some fat and vege for fiber I will not get any blood sugar issues. For example I have for breakfast meal like that in 7am after that I bike to the work and I can work for 4-5 hours before I will have another meal. So it's 6 hours without food sometimes.. But I can't imagine eating sugar like honey instead of that rice. I would have to keep eating from that moment like every hour. Which basically people from Peat world are doing.. That is far from healthy.. Fruits are stimulating for sure. But big meal with complex carbs from starches is calming a lot for me. I agree with not eating anything sweet if you want to rest and heal some adrenal fatigue etc.. But there is much more factors like mineral balance. For example copper is very strong neurostimulant. There are minerals that will stimulate your body and minerals that will calm you down like zinc, magnesium, calcium.. Vegans look crazy like on drugs because they are eating copper and sugar 24/7 without protein and calming minerals.. If I eat some legume/grain heavy meal with a lot of copper etc.. It will stimulate my body like crazy to do shit. But if I eat some steak with some low copper starch like rice I am like a monk..
All I can say is, listen to her podcasts to learn more about her ideas and explanations, she explains a lot in them. Also, contact her and ask her about it if it doesn'tmake sense. She has a master of science in biochemistry so I am sure she can give a detailed explanation about her stand. The only way to find something out for sure is to try it out. Buy a program and do it low A style which is totally doable. Try it strict for 3 months, then add sugar back in and see what happens.
I used to have the opinion that sugar lowers cortisol and stress but have had to re-evaluate that opinion since the effect I get from sugar does not match the theoretical knowledge I had of it, no matter how much I wanted it to. Sugar boosts me and gives me so much energy, no matter how exhausted I am it jolts me back to life (probably the same effect coffe has on coffee drinkers), providing energy I don't have, and keeping it in my diet (also as fruit) has probably been very contraproductive considering my chronic stress and trauma, burning the candle at both ends so to speak. Starch doesn't have that effect in me at all. Starch keeps my brain calm and my body relaxed.
Edit: the reason I say buy her program is because it is not as easy as just adding beans. Many do that, the read some blog on the internet based on second hand information, add beans, feel like shit and say "well bean protocol didn't work for me ao it must be BS". If one have digestive issues one cannot have beans and veggies at first. She will help finding the right protocol for one's issues and afterwards for life be available to help tweak diet based on symptoms and answer all questions one might have.